NEWS – The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its Digital Payments Index (DPI) for March 2025, marking a continued rise in digital transactions

HIGHLIGHTS

• The RBI-DPI rose to 493.22, up from 465.33 in September 2024 and 445.5 in March 2024, reflecting an increased penetration and usage of digital payments.
• Growth was primarily driven by improvements in payment infrastructure (supply-side) and overall payment performance.

What is the RBI-DPI?

• Introduced in March 2018 (base index = 100), the DPI measures digital payment adoption across India.
• Published semi-annually, it evaluates performance through five parameters:
  • Payment Enablers (25%)
  • Payment Infrastructure – Demand-side (10%)
  • Payment Infrastructure – Supply-side (15%)
  • Payment Performance (45%)
  • Consumer Centricity (5%)

UPI: Catalyst of India’s Payment Revolution

• According to the IMF, India leads globally in fast payments, largely due to UPI, launched in 2016 by NPCI.
• UPI enables instant, fee-free transactions using mobile numbers or UPI IDs.
• Key features include:
  • AutoPay for recurring payments
  • Real-time processing using NEFT/RTGS/IMPS
  • UPI 2.0 with enhanced security, overdraft, invoicing
  • New fixed time slots for AutoPay (from August 1, 2025)

Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) Also Rises

• RBI’s FI-Index rose to 67 in March 2025 from 64.2 in March 2024.
• It evaluates Access (35%), Usage (45%), and Quality (20%) of financial services.
• Reflects improved inclusion and financial literacy efforts across banking, insurance, pensions, and investment sectors.